WHO ARE YOU, AND ARE YOU HAPPY WITH WHO YOU ARE?

SCRIPTURE: 
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me 
was not without effect.  No, I worked harder than all of them; 
yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.  
(1 Corinthians 15:10)

MEDITATION:
Have you ever thought about why you were created?
Some of us have aspirations to become someone else 
and it only causes frustrations for us.
Why? Because God made every person unique.
He gave each person the gifts and talents He selected specifically for them.

How does that make you feel?
Doesn’t it make you feel unique and special?
The question we have to ask ourselves is, 
“What will I do with what He has given me?”
Will I squander them in my efforts to fulfill my own desires?
Will I decide that I can be someone other than who He made me to be?

Let’s face this truth: 
We came into the world with nothing, and we will leave it with nothing. 
We should not assume that man’s idea of success and God’s are the same? 
We may have achieved some amazing accomplishments, but without 
the gifts of intelligence, imagination, personality, and physical 
energy (which are all endowed by God) where would we be? 
The truth us, we would all be poor in spirit and achievements 
without God’s infinite mercy and love.

We came out of nothing, and if we are anything, it is because God is everything. 
If He withheld His power from us for one brief instant, 
if He withheld our breath of life for one moment, 
our physical existence would shrivel into nothingness, 
and our souls would be whisked away into an endless eternity. 

Paul recognized that all he had was from the Lord 
and he worked hard to utilize every gift and talent he had been given.
He also realized that whatever success he had 
was strictly a result of the grace of God.
Paul knew that when the Lord was vibrant and alive in his life, 
he was going in the right direction and would find joy 
in observing how the Lord was using him.
If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive 
themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can 
take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to 
someone else, for each one should carry their own load. 
(Galatians 6:3-5)

ACTION:
What about you?
Is the Lord vibrant and alive in your own life?
Do you give Him the credit and thank Him for all of your achievements?
Have you gratefully accepted the gifts and talents He has given you 
and are you diligently using what you have been given?
Are you frustrating yourself by trying to chart your own path 
and ignoring the one the Lord has chosen for you?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, all I have and all I am has been given to me by Your 
Almighty hands. Forgive me for the times I tend to boast about my 
accomplishments. Forgive me for failing to follow the path You have 
chosen for me, and for not properly using the gifts and talents You have 
given me. Help me to understand what You want of me, and then to 
diligently pursue those things. Teach me to set aside my own arrogant 
pride and ego, so that I can humbly find joy in watching You work 
through me. I know that when You are in control, I will find joy in 
knowing that I am growing closer to You, and I will have confidence 
that I am doing Your Will with my life.”